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Old 03-16-2019, 06:13 AM   #1
Yako
 
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Default Thaumatology Sorcery - Switching Between Attack Spells

Sorcery is build using the Rules for Alternative Abilities from GURPS Powers, so I had a question regarding the switching of spells, particularly, one attack spell to another, as might often occur in combat.
Sorcery states that only if you recast the same spell you get to cast in only one second.

However, GURPS Powers has this passage regarding alternative abilities:

Quote:
1. It’s impossible to use the abilities simultaneously or have a Link
(p. B106) between them. To change settings requires a Ready maneuver.
After switching to an attack (Affliction, Binding, Innate Attack, Leech,
Neutralize, Obscure, Static, and anything else the GM views as an
“attack”), switching to a different attack is a free action. If the user can
make more than one attack per turn, he must use the same setting for
all of them
So does switching from, say, an affliction to stun your enemies to an area of effect fireball still require one concentrate maneuver + one attack maneuver, or does the rule from Powers apply?
I think that would be a good thing to explicitly clarify to avoid confusion.
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Old 03-16-2019, 02:03 PM   #2
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Default Re: Thaumatology Sorcery - Switching Between Attack Spells

I'd say the rule from Power applies, because a duel arcane is exactly the sort of situation for which it was written. -GEF
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Old 03-16-2019, 03:21 PM   #3
evileeyore
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Default Re: Thaumatology Sorcery - Switching Between Attack Spells

The rules from Sorcery overrule the rules from Powers. Sorcery is it's own beast in this regards.

As so:
Quote:
Originally Posted by Thaumatology Sorcery pg 8, Simultaneous Spells, Under the Hood
Sorcery uses the standard rules for alternative abilities as defined in GURPS Power-Ups 8: Limitations – but with two changes as a special effect. As a drawback, the sorcerer must always take a full second to switch spells, even when switching between attack advantages (which would normally be a free action). However, this is balanced by allowing him to maintain multiple copies of the same spell; e.g., after paying for Complex Illusion once, he can use two “AA slots” to have two separate illusions going simultaneously.
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Old 03-16-2019, 03:30 PM   #4
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Default Re: Thaumatology Sorcery - Switching Between Attack Spells

Thanks evileyore, for the quote. So my answer's not canonical, but I'm not sure it would break anything Then again, I suppose a "fair" duel arcane might have rules like "No Puching" and "No use of the same magic twice in a row."
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Old 03-16-2019, 07:00 PM   #5
Yako
 
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Default Re: Thaumatology Sorcery - Switching Between Attack Spells

Quote:
Originally Posted by evileeyore View Post
The rules from Sorcery overrule the rules from Powers. Sorcery is it's own beast in this regards.

As so:
Ah, thanks, since that rules are very similar to other cases of "buying the second most expensive alternative ability at full price", I mostly skimmed over that box before.

In this case, Accelerated Casting from Pyramid 2 really should be a natural choice for any sorcerer - you never want to waste a maneuver in combat unless you have to.
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